


Shining bright to see what you could truly be

by Mooresomore



Category: Men's Hockey RPF
Genre: Carter's Injury, Family, Fluff, M/M, Threesome - M/M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-06-08
Updated: 2019-06-08
Packaged: 2020-04-23 03:21:31
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,644
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/19142527
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Mooresomore/pseuds/Mooresomore
Summary: Just a fluffy look into the life of Carter, Claude, Danny, and their family.





	Shining bright to see what you could truly be

**Author's Note:**

> If you know/are anyone in this fic, turn back now. Please. Completely made up!!
> 
> Disclaimer: This is complete and total FICTION. That means it never happened and is completely untrue. In fact, this is so far from the truth that it isn’t even in the same country as the truth. I don’t own anybody, and I make no money off of this. I am not in any way implying said characters’ sexual identities. All knowledge of these people are from public information. All thoughts are my own.
> 
> Unbeata'd, so all mistakes are all (and only) mine
> 
> Title from Earth, Wind and Fire's "Shining Star"

It had been close, but they’d made it to Cameron’s game with minutes to spare. They took their seats and watched the semifinal game begin.

Claude had confiscated both Danny and Carter’s phones, so no accidental “leak” of their location was going to happen. They hadn’t told the boys they were coming: they didn’t want to get the boys’ hopes up and then not be able to make it. (And it had been close; with the flight delay at JFK, they weren’t sure it was going to happen. Fortunately, the weather worked with them and gave them a slight tail wind, leading to an on-time arrival.)

Cameron had finished the game with a goal and an assist, and the team had won, so he was already in good spirits. When he came out of the locker room and saw Carter standing there, his mouth dropped open in shock. “Carter, you’re here!” He made a beeline for Carter, who gave him a tight hug.

“Of course I’m here bud. Like I would miss your state semifinal game. I’m always gonna support you bud.”

“But you… When we talked… You said,” Cameron couldn’t form words and sentences. “You’re here,” he said again.

“We didn’t want to say anything in case something happened and we couldn’t make it,” Carter said, smiling as Cameron processed the words.

“We?!”

“Your dad and Claude are here too.” Carter grinned. “They’re out waiting in the car.”

“You guys are the best!” Cameron exclaimed. “Let’s go, eh? I wanna spend as much time with you guys before you have to leave.”

“Lead the way.”

“Dad! Claude!” Cameron smiled as he approached the car. “I’m glad you guys are here. I missed you.” He gave both of them a hug, lingering with Danny just a bit longer.

“We missed you too. Let’s say we go home and get some dinner, and we can catch up?” Danny asked. “We’ve got a lot to talk about.”

“Sure,” Cameron said. “Claude, will you make grilled cheese sandwiches? Please??!”

“Of course.” Claude chuckled.

“I tried, but they don’t turn out the same,” Cameron said.

“It’s cause they’re made with love,” Danny and Carter said at the same time, laughing.

“Ignore them,” Claude said. “You can help me in the kitchen, and we’ll figure it out.”

“Thanks Claude. I love you.”

“Love you too kid.”

*

Waiting at home was another surprise. “Caelan and Carson are here too?” Cameron asked as they pulled into the driveway. “What’s going on guys?”

“You’ll find out soon enough,” Danny said, smiling. He, Claude, and Carter had been keeping this secret for weeks. “Don’t worry, it’s nothing bad. I promise.” Danny added, seeing the concern on Cameron’s face.

“Ok.” Cameron dropped his stuff off in his room and then went back into the kitchen to help Claude with the sandwiches.

Once the table had been set and they were all seated comfortably, Danny cleared his throat to speak. “So, Claude, Carter, and I have something to ask you guys.”

“Yes?” The boys looked at Danny. “The answer is probably yes anyway,” they chuckled.

“I haven’t even asked you yet!” Danny tried to protest, but he was laughing too hard. “You don’t even…”

“What your dad so eloquently has avoided doing is asking you guys if it’s ok if Carter joins the family- officially.” Claude said, interrupting Danny.

“Yes, a thousand times yes.” Cameron said; Carson and Caelan echoed “Yes!” and “It’s about time!”

Carter looked between everyone at the table. He hadn’t expected this to be so easy. “Um, thanks?” he asked, cheeks flushing red.

“Ah, Carts, you’ve been like family since day one,” Claude said, wrapping Carter in a hug. “And you’ve taken Danny and the boys in as your own.”

“Stop, you’re gonna make me cry,” Carter said, pawing at Claude.

“I mean, we can’t make it ‘legally’ official, but we don’t need that as long as we have each other, right?” Danny asked.

“Yeah,” Carter said. “Thank you. All of you.”

“Cameron, go get the surprise we have for them,” Carson said.

“What surprise?” Danny, Claude, and Carter asked in unison. The last “surprise” had almost led to a visit from the cops when the car slipped out of gear (fortunately, it had crashed into their own garage instead of Mrs. Case’s). And then there was the flower mishap…

“Just wait.” Caelan grinned.

Cameron came back with three bags. He placed one in front of Danny, another in front of Claude, and the final one in front of Carter. “Open them.”

Danny went first; he chuckled when he saw the black mug with the “Mr.” on it. “Ah, thanks guys.”

Claude was next. “Orange? Really?!” he laughed. “But thank you.”

“Why is mine white?” Carter asked as he unwrapped his. Once he looked at Danny’s and Claude’s, he said, “Oh. Nevermind. Team colors. Nice touch boys. Thanks.”

“Besides, you’re an angel,” Danny teased.

“What’s with the date though? October 2, 2016?” Claude asked.

Carter turned red as Cameron spoke. “That’s the day Carter signed his ELC. The day he officially became a Flyer.”

“But that’s not the day…” Carter trailed off. “We didn’t start dating until 2018…”

“True, but let’s face it, we knew the minute you signed that you were something special,” Danny said.

“Fine,” Carter gave up; he wasn’t going to win this one. “Thank you boys. This was nice of you.”

“Yeah,” Danny and Claude said.

“You’re welcome,” the boys said.

As they finished dinner, they caught up on everything; they rarely got to have “family” meals like this during the season, and then it was time for Danny, Claude, and Carter to head back.

“See you boys soon. We love you,” Danny said. Carter and Claude said something similar as they hugged the boys as well.

“We love you too. Safe travels. Call you when you get home,” Caelan said.

“Will do.”

*

“You’ve raised some pretty awesome kids Danny,” Carter said, resting his head on Claude’s shoulder as the plane took off.

“Aw, thanks. But I had a lot of help from my ex, and especially from Claude.”

“True.” Claude laughed. “I have so many stories I could tell you,” he looked over to Danny, who shook his head. “But I won’t. Get some rest. We’ll wake you up when we land.”

“Ok,” Carter closed his eyes and was out quickly; Danny and Claude talked for a few.

“You don’t think we’re putting too much pressure on him, do you?” Danny asked once he was sure Carter was asleep. “It’s hard enough being a rookie in the league. Then we throw in this whole relationship dynamic. It’s a lot.”

“He’s doing ok, Danny. I’m watching out for him, and we talk every day. He hangs out with a couple of the other guys too- mainly McKenna, but I think that’s a goalie thing.” Claude chuckled. “But, I think if it was too much, he’d say something.”

“That’s what I thought about a certain rookie I had a few years ago,” Danny smiled softly.

“And look how I turned out.” Claude smiled. “He’s gonna be just fine. Trust me.”

“Alright.”

*

Carter slept the whole plane ride home, and let himself be ushered into Danny’s house (and bed) without a fight. He was asleep again the minute his head hit the pillow. Danny and Claude arranged themselves around Carter and fell asleep as well.

In the morning, Danny and Claude woke up, but Carter was nowhere to be found. A quick sniff explained why.

“You didn’t have to make breakfast Carts,” Claude said, coming over to sneak a kiss as he grabbed a cup of coffee.

“I know. I wanted to.” Carter replied.

“Well, it was a very nice- and welcome- gesture,” Danny said, leaning in for a kiss as well. “Thank you.”

“Anytime,” Carter said.

After discussing their weekly plans over breakfast, they went their separate ways- Danny back to Maine, and Carter and Claude to practice.

*

Carter thought he was ok after warm ups in Montreal; he had just twisted something wrong. When the pain got worse throughout (and after) the game, he knew it was something more serious.

Danny was FaceTiming them from Cameron’s championship game when he saw Carter wince. “Hartsy, what’s going on?”

Carter flushed, embarrassed he’d been caught. “Nothing. Just tweaked something wrong I think,” he tried to fib, but Claude shaking his head in disagreement didn’t help.

“You had trouble sitting down on the couch Carter. And you haven’t moved at all since we got home.”

“You gotta go see the trainer,” Danny said.

“I’ll be fine. The Stadium Series… you guys need me.” Carter protested.

“What we need is you to be healthy and not get injured further if it is truly an injury,” Claude said. “And I need my boyfriend to quit being a stubborn ass and let someone take care of him.”

“Carter, listen to Claude, eh?” Danny asked. “He’s right. One game isn’t worth the rest of your career.”

“Fine,” Carter said.

“And let him take care of you. His nursing skills are pretty darn good,” Danny added.

“Fine.”

“I gotta go. I’ll catch you guys later.”

“Ok. Tell Cameron we love him.”

“Will do.”

*~*

Cameron had called them later on that night (he’d won 4-3 in OT), and after the got off the phone, Claude looked at Carter. “Please just go get looked at tomorrow, ok? It would make me feel a lot better.”

“Fine.” Carter sighed.

“Thank you.”

Carter was gone when Claude woke up in the morning; Claude figured he had gone to see the doctor. He came downstaits and found the plate of food waiting for him.

_ Went in early. See you there. _

Claude finished the food and then got ready.

When he made it in, there were whispers already in the locker room, and the coaches, trainers, and Carter were nowhere to be found. Claude put on his gear and hit the ice.

Coach showed up a few minutes later and broke the news that Carter was out with a “lower body injury” for the next 10 days or so. While he had known it was coming, it was still hard for Claude to accept it. He was supposed to protect Carter, not let him get injured.

Carter had been excused from practice; he nodded at Claude and mouthed “home”. Claude gave a nod back.

*~*

Carter was on the couch, staring into space when Claude got home.  Carter jumped when Claude touched his arm. “Oh, hi, G.”

“Hey. How ya doing kid?”

“Sucks,” Carter said.

“I know it does. Danny and I have both dealt with it before,” Claude said. “Danny’s the worst patient ever,” Claude teased. “But if you tell him I told you that, you’re in trouble.”

“Sir, yes, sir,” Carter teased. Claude smiled. At least the injury hadn’t dulled Carter’s humor.

“You need your rest,” Claude said. “What do you say we get in bed and FaceTime with Danny?”

“Ok.” Carter let Claude lead them to the room. Once he was all snuggled in and comfortable, Claude joined him and connected with Danny on FaceTime.

Carter tried to stay awake, but Danny’s voice lulled him to sleep (like it always did). Once Carter was out, Danny and Claude talked about the injury and how to help Carter.

“I’ll take care of him. Promise.” Claude said.

“I know you will.”

“You’re doing a good job too. I knew you would be the one who could get him to finally relax and rest,” Claude said.

“Aw, and here I thought you wanted to talk to me,” Danny teased.

“I do. Hey, you’re still coming in for the Stadium Series, right?”

“Yeah.”

“You haven’t told Carter yet?”

“No. Why?” Danny looked perplexed. “What are you thinking?”

“You could come early and surprise him?”

“Oh, that can be arranged.” Danny said, grinning. Suddenly there was a key in the lock and the FaceTime call was ended.

Claude was going to call Danny out about hanging up on him when he put two and two together. Ended call and key in the door meant…

“Danny?!” Claude asked as the bedroom door swung open. “What? How? When?”

“You weren’t the only one scheming,” Danny smiled, pointing to Carter, who was (somehow) still asleep.

“You guys are little shits.” Claude laughed.

“Aw, you love us though,” Danny said.

“True. Come on. Get into bed. We all could use a nap,” Claude said.

Carter woke up when Danny got into bed; he quickly attached himself to Danny and held on tight.

“We got you,” Danny said as Claude bracketed Carter from the other side. “We’re here.” Danny started whispering something in French, and Carter was asleep again in minutes.

“What did you tell him?” Claude asked (Danny’s voice had been too low for him to hear).

“That we were proud of him, love him, and always will support him. I also told him to let his injury fully heal, no matter the timetable. Oh, and that I missed you guys.”

“Aw, you’re a sap,” Claude teased.

“Yep. And you love it,” Danny smarted back.

“I do. Rest.”

*~*

Danny stayed with Carter the next day while Claude went to practice. “How you doing Carter?”

“Fine. It just… it sucks,” Carter said. “I know injuries happen, but why now? When we were getting on a good roll?”

“Things happen for weird reasons,” Danny said. They were mostly silent on the couch and both fell asleep. Claude found them when he got home.

They were too cute not to snap a picture of though, so Claude had to do that first. Then he woke up Danny, and together, they worked on their plan for Carter.

“Are you sure?” Danny asked one more time.

“Yep. Confirmed all the info,” Claude said.

“Perfect. He needs this.” Danny said.

“Yeah,” Claude agreed. “I’m glad the boys are gonna come hang out with him.”

“Me too. He loves them, and they love him.”

“You go get them, and I’ll stay here with Carter in case he wakes up.”

“Ok.”

“G?” Carter asked when he work up a little bit later. “When’d you get home? Where’s Danny?”

“Bout an hour ago. You were sleeping, so I didn’t want to wake you up. Danny went out for a bit, but he should be back soon. How you feeling?”

“Sore. Bored of not being able to do anything.”

“I know,” Claude sympathized. “It’s the worst, huh? You’ll be back in no time- if you let it heal properly.”

“Yes coach,” Carter teased.

Just the, the door swung open and Danny said, “The package has arrived!” Carter stared at Danny, confused, until Danny moved aside and the three Briere boys beelined for Carter.

“Hi boys,” Carter said, accepting the hugs. “What are you doing here?”

“We’re here to hang out with you while you heal. Dad and Claude thought it would be fun for you to have someone to play video games with all day while they’re busy.”

“I like it,” Carter agreed. “Now I won’t feel so alone when they desert me,” Carter teased. “Seriously though, thanks for coming. And thank you Danny and Claude.”

“Anytime,” came the multiple replies.

They boys came with Carter to the Stadium Series, where they sat in the press box. They kept him on his toes until he was ready to go back to skating and then playing again.

Carter felt a little shaky in his first few moments of his first game back, but that quickly faded. Danny (and the boys) had gone back home, but Claude was right there. “How’d I get so lucky?” Carter asked Claude and Danny.

“Because you’re you,” Claude grinned.

“Because you deserve it,” Danny added.

“I love you guys.”

“We love you too.”

No matter what happened, one thing was for sure: Danny, Claude, and Carter had a bond that could never be broken.


End file.
